flatlandreefer Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 What are my options for maintaining Calcium and Alkalinity in my 25 gallon tank. Last time I checked my KH is in acceptable range but towards the lower end(ph is also low) and I am not sure what my calcium is because I do not currently have a test kit for it but I know I will need to address this issue soon. I know dosing two part with a dosing pump is the optimal solution but I am not sure if I want to invest in a dosing setup right now. I know a lot of people dose 2 part manually but my concern with this is I am out of town at least once a month and there are times where work will not allow time to make sure I am able to dose the tank every day. What are the repercussions of not dosing consistently every day? I do have an ATO so Kalkwasser could be an option but I am not very well versed on this option so any input will definitely help. Also, one thing I make a point of doing is sticking to my weekly 25% water changes and unless I am out of town for more than a week this will always get done. Thanks for the help! Link to comment
seabass Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 Do you have a lot of stony corals and/or coralline? You're not dosing everyday right now and your tank is fine. Sure stability is best, but you could skip a day or two and not have any problems. I feel that two part is even easier than Kalk. For a small tank, B-Ionic is a good choice. For larger setups, BRS two part is more economical. If you want to, you can always add dosing pumps later. Link to comment
flatlandreefer Posted September 26, 2016 Author Share Posted September 26, 2016 Do you have a lot of stony corals and/or coralline? You're not dosing everyday right now and your tank is fine. Sure stability is best, but you could skip a day or two and not have any problems. I feel that two part is even easier than Kalk. For a small tank, B-Ionic is a good choice. For larger setups, BRS two part is more economical. If you want to, you can always add dosing pumps later. My tank by no means is loaded with stonys right now but I do have LPS and plan on stocking it LPS heavy. What has me concerned right now is it seems like the shells on my snails are starting to dissolve, but I need a CA test to verify this. How is dosing handled when a day or two is skipped with two part? Do you continue with regular dosing amount or would I have to bump up the dose to make up for the depletion that occurred during the two days that were skipped? Link to comment
seabass Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 You can usually just add both days worth. You just don't want to increase alkalinity levels more than 0.5 meq/L (1.4 dKH) per day, or increase calcium more than 50 ppm per day. Link to comment
flatlandreefer Posted September 26, 2016 Author Share Posted September 26, 2016 You can usually just add both days worth. You just don't want to increase alkalinity levels more than 0.5 meq/L (1.4 dKH) per day, or increase calcium more than 50 ppm per day. Oh ok, not sure why I didn't think about that solution. Any recommendations for cost effective CA and Mg test kits? Link to comment
seabass Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 I'd stick with Salifert. Beats buying another kit, only to have to buy a Salifert later on. Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Esv bionic 2 part doser is great. I used to use the powders but prefer the liquid. For magnesium testing Salifert kit is my fav. Ca, alk, nitrate - i use Api because the results were the same with Red Sea and Salifert kit but I save $$$ with Api. Link to comment
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